… Kondo’s Shinto spirituality, including the belief that inanimate things have divine life, shines through in her writing and TV series. She suggests that declutterers touch every item and show gratitude for those that are discarded. Each episode of the Netflix show depicts Kondo “greeting” the messy home with a bow, treating it, the things inside and the owners with respect and affection.

Rebecca Toews of Bridging, a Twin Cities nonprofit that helps people out of homelessness, discovered a note attached to the bottom of a table that was donated last month. She wondered if the donor had been influenced by Kondo.

“For many years my family sat around this table and enjoyed sharing meals and spending time with one another,” the note said. “We hope that your family can do the same.”